LONG BEACH — Today the City Council will make decisions that could affect Long Beach politics — and the makeup of the council itself — for years to come.

The council will decide whether some or all of the city’s nine council districts should be reshaped, and how this redistricting should be implemented during its 5 p.m. meeting at City Hall, 333 W. Ocean Blvd.

It’s been a decade since the current boundaries were put in place.

Last time around, the issue divided the council as members fought to have key economic and political strongholds, such as the Port of Long Beach, in their districts. The council and city management have said that they want to avoid that contentiousness this time.

While no new maps are being drawn up today, the council will decide how significantly the district boundaries should be altered, based on the 2010 U.S. Census data.

City officials use the data to calculate what the ideal population of each district would be if divided equally among all nine. Long Beach’s citywide population was 462,257 in 2010, according to the Census, so the ideal population for one of Long Beach’s nine council districts is 51,362.

Traditionally, city officials don’t consider districts that are within 5 percent of the ideal population to be in need of new boundaries. Those that fall above or below the 5 percent threshold — in this case, less than 48,794 residents or more than 53,930 — must shrink or grow.

This time, four districts, all in the western half of the city, exceed the 5 percent threshold.

The 8th and 9th districts, which are Long Beach’s northernmost districts, each saw their proportional populations swell and will need to shrink.

The 1st District surrounding downtown and the 6th District in Central Long Beach each are underpopulated and would need to grow.

Of course, district boundaries can’t be changed in a vacuum — if one district grows, a neighboring district must shrink.

Caught directly in the middle of these four districts is the 7th District, which likely would have to change its boundaries as well to accommodate its neighbors, potentially shifting northward.

In addition to deciding whether Long Beach should be redistricted at all, the council is being asked to make two other policy decisions today:

Should it focus on redistricting only the districts that exceed the 5 percent threshold, or should all nine districts be redrawn?

Should it strive to make all of the districts’ populations as equal as possible, shooting for a zero percent population variance, or should the council try to make as few changes as possible, just keeping districts within the 5 percent threshold?

If the city is redistricted, a series of public hearings will be held before final maps are approved in August. That would create new political boundaries just in time for the April 2012 election, when the even-numbered council seats are on the line.

The city has already adopted other criteria for the redistricting process, including getting public input; focusing on population areas instead of areas of nonpopulation, such as the port; neighborhoods, ethnic communities and other groups having a clear identity shouldn’t be divided; and that districts should be compact and avoid gerrymandering.

How big are Long Beach’s 9 Council Districts?

The City Council today will consider its policies for redrawing the council district boundaries.

Based on a total population of 462,257 in 2010, the ideal population for one of Long Beach’s nine council districts is 51,362. Traditionally, districts that are within 5 percent of the ideal population aren’t given new boundaries.

One issue the council will consider today is whether to make all of the districts’ populations as equal as possible, or to make as few changes as possible and just keep districts within the 5 percent threshold.

Here is the population by council district and percent deviation from the ideal population size:

1st – 48,314; -5.9 percent

2nd – 52,341; +1.9 percent

3rd – 52,320; +1.9 percent

4th – 51,456; +0.2 percent

5th – 49,852; -2.9 percent

6th – 48,206; -6.1 percent

7th – 50,597; -1.5 percent

8th – 54,075; +5.3 percent

9th – 55,096; +7.3 percent

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, city of Long Beach

Want to go?

These are the Long Beach City Council meetings set for today:

2 p.m. – Public safety committee to hear a report on the city’s civil emergency management and response.

3:30 p.m. – Council study session on infrastructure funding.

5 p.m. – Regular council meeting. Topics include redistricting, setting new rules for wireless telecommunications facilities, and a final vote signing off on the plastic bag ban that was approved last week.

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